Electric-circuit-closing plug



I F. DOMINICK ELECTRIC cmcun' GLOSIN G PLUG May 10-. 1921. 1,628,636

Filed April 23. 1921 2 Sheets-Sheet '1 ATTORN Y F. DOMINICK ELECTRIC CIRCUIT CLOSING PLUG May 10,1921. 1,628,636

* Filed April 23. 1921 2- Sheets-$21001. 2

ATTORNEY sulating material an Patented May 10,- 1927. r

, FRANKLHI DOMINICK, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

ELECTRIC-CIRCUIT-LOSING PLUG.

Application filed A li-i123, 1921. Serial 110.463,?66.

This invention relates to electric circuit closing plugs and has'for its primary object to provide a simple, eflicient and inexpensive plug which is particularly designed for use in connection with electrical appliances such as electric fans, irons, toasters, washing machines, lamps, etc., which may be easily and quickly inserted into or removed from the socket.

It is another important object of themvention, to provide means carried by the plug for insuring good electrical conductivity between the. contact piece of the socket and the current conducting wires leading from the plug to the lamp or other appliance.

In one construction of my invention, I provide a one-piece dplug of a suitable inupon this plug yieldable circuit closing means is engaged to which one of the conducting wires is connected, said means adapted to co'act with the corrugated metal liner of the socket member when the plug is forced longitudinally therein whereby the socket and plug are held in assembled relation. In the end of the plug a convolute spring contact plate is arranged and connected to the other of the current conducting wires. This plate is adapted to be engaged with the contact plate of the socket which is connected to the other side of the circuit and is placed under compression when the plug is inserted into the socket as far as possible. Thus a good elec-' trical connection is obtained. When it is desired to disconnect the plug from the socket, it isonly necessa to pull upon the conducting wires or cor s as the yieldable means on the plug will thereby be readily disengaged from the corrugated liner of the socket. However, this yieldable'. means exerts sufiicient pressure against the socket liner to insure good electrical conductivity and to prevent the accidental disconnection of the plug from the socket.

With the above and other objects-"in view, the invention consists in' the improved circuit closing plug and in the form,- construction and relative arrangement of its several parts as will be hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying the subjoined claims. v

In the drawings whe ein I have illustrated several desirable enib iments of the invention and. in which similar reference characdrawings .and subsequently incorporated in tors designate corresponding parts throughout the several views,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of one form of the invention;

Figure 2 is a similar view of the plug body, the metal sleeve and the circuit closins: contact member being removed;

' Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view;

Figure 4 is an end elevation;

Figure 5 is a detail perspective view of the metallic sleeve;

Figure 6 is a similar view of the spring contact member;

Figure 7 is'a plan view of the blank from which the metal sleeve is formed;

Figure 8 is a side elevation showing a slightly modified form of the plug;

Figure '9 is a similar view of the' plug body, the socket engaging member being removed;

Figure 10 is a vertical sectional view;

Figure 11 is an end elevation;

Figure 12 is a detail side elevation of the socket engaging member;

Figure 13 is a detail perspective view of the spring contact member, and Figure 14 is a lan view of the blank from which the soc et engaging member is formed.

Referring in detail to the drawings and more particularly to Figures 1 to 7 thereof,

5-designates the body of the circuit closing plug which may be formed'of porcelain or any other desired com osition insulating material. This plug bo y is provided with a diametrically reduced cylindrical portion: '6. At its larger end the body 5 is axially bored, as at 7, andv angularly extending channels or passages 8 and 9 respectively communicate with the inner end of this bore 7. The reduced portion 6of the plug body is provided with a longitudinally extending.

rectangular recess 10. which communicates at its upper end with the passage 9. The other passage 8 at its lower end is in communication with one side of a rectangular recess or pocket 11 which is centrally formed in the en of the plug. v

The reduced part 6 of'the plug body is further provided with spaced longitudinally extending recesses 12. r The a'diacent recesses adually increase in depth in relatively opposite directions as clearl seen in Figure 2 of'the drawings. In a dition to the recesses 12," the lower end portion of thepartojof the plug is provided ongitudinally in its periphery with circumferentially spaced notches 13 for a purpose which will presently appear. 7

Upon the reduced part 6 of the plug a metallic shell .or sleeve is adapted to be engaged through which one side of the circuit is closed. As shown in Figure 7 of the drawin s', this sleeve is stamped from a metal p ate to produce a strip 14 of the requisite length having resilient or yieldable tongues 15 alternately extending towards the relatively opposite longitudinal edges of the metal plate. Each'of these tongues is provided with a single corrugation 16. In

- addition to the tongues 15, the plate 14: is

also cent-rally provided with a, finger 17 which is angularly offset out of the plane of said plate, as shown inFigure 3. In addition, the metal plate 14: is provided adjacent one of its longitudinal edges with the spaced a'ngularly projecting lugs 18. This plate 14 is preferably of copper, brass or other metal of high electrical conductivity and is adapted to be bent into. circular form and the 'end edges thereof welded or otherwise suitably secured to each other. The metal sleeve or shell thus formed is of such diameter that it may be readily slipped longitudinally over the reducedjportion 6 of the plug body so that the angularly disposed lugs 18 will snap into the notches 13 and thereby retain the shell or sleeve in place. The offset finger 17 1s positioned withm the recess 1 0 while the several/tongues overlie the recesses 12 of the. plug body.

' The finger 17 is provided with a threaded aperture to receive the hinding screw 19 whereby the end of one of the conducting wires j20 may be securely fixedin metallic contact with said finger.

The central recess 11 in the end of the L plug body receives the contact member gles to shown in Figure 6, which is formed from a metal strip 21 of brass or copper bent upon itself to provide a series of folds 22 therein. Adjacent one of its ends the metal contact strip is provided with an arm 23 on one longitudinaledge thereof disposed at right ancarries the, binding screw 24'whereby .the end of the other current conducting wire 25 may be securedin metallic contact with said arm. This] resilient contact member is adapted to be disposed within the recess with the :end thereof from which the arm 23 projects engaged against the base 'wall of the recess whilethe fold a't'the o posite end of the contact member extends Beyond the end face of the plug. After the wire 25 has beenconnected to the arm 23, a set screw 26 threaded in one side of the" plug is adjusted into tight engagement agamstthe wire 25 to thereby hold the contact member in place within the recess 11. v V

In 'thefuseotlmy invention as above described, assuming that P P!" the plane of said strip. This and 'erly assembled as seen inFigure 3, when it is desired to use the lamp, fan or other appliance to which the wires 20 and 25 are connected, the plug is forced longitudinally into the socket member, which as is well known, is provided with a corrugated lining sleeve designed to receive a thread on the plug. By means of my improvement however, the plug is not threaded by a turning movement into the socket but is simply forced by a rectilinear movement into the socket. The corrugations 16 of the resilient tongues 15 will coact with the corrugations of the metal liner of the socket and exert a constant holding pressure thereon to thereby close one side'of the circuit and also hold'the plu in assembled relation with the socket. W ion the plug is forced into the socket to the limit of its movement, the free end of the center contact member carried by the plug engages the fixed contact plate of the socket and the folds 22 of said member are compressed. Thus this center contact member of the plug will exert a constant positive pressure against the contact plate of the socket whereby the circuit is closed. l

In Figures 8 to 14 inclusive, I have shown a slightly modified form .of the invention wherein the part 6' of the plug body is rovided with spaced longitudinally exten ing channels 27 communicating adjacent to the head of the plug with an annular groove or channel 28. This plug is provided with the passages 8' and 9' corresponding to those above referred to in] connection with the preferred embodiment of the invention and the rectangular opening 10' in one side of the plug body communicates with the passage 9'.

In this construction. the metallic socket engaging member is stamped from a plate rass orcopper intothe form shown in Figure 14 to provide a relatively narrow strip 29 having the spaced tongues 30 projectmg from one edge thereof and being also provided with a central finger 31. This strip is bentinto circular form as shown in Figure 12 and the tongues 30 are corrugated as at 32 and bent from the edge of said strip 29 to extend exteriorly of the annular band and in substantially parallel relation to its axis. The finger 31 1S bent from the edge of the strip 29 in the reverse direction and is disposed inwardly of said annular band. Thus when the strip 29 is bent into annular form and positioned within the groove or channel 28 and has its ends suitably connected to each other, the corrugated tongues 30 are positioned in line with tie longitudi- -nal channels 27 in the plug body while the finger 31 is disposed within the opening 10.

. this new. embodiment of the into yield and move over the corrugations vention, the center resilient contact member 33 carried by the plug is provided with an arm 34 extending longitudinally from one end of the series" of folds. This arm projects into the passage 8 of the plug body as,

shown in Figurelt), and carries the binding screw to which the other of the conducting wires is connected. The set screw 35 tact plate of the socket as above ex lained. In either form of the invention, t e plug can be readily disconnected from the socket by simply pulling upon the wires or cords,

thereby causing the corrugated tongues 32 of the metal socket liner. Therefore, the radial pressure of these corrugated tongues against the liner is sufiiciently great to prevent an accidental disconnection of the plug from the socket when the device is in use.v

By means of my improved construction, the connection or disconnection can be easily and quickly effected, while at the same time the plug is a one-piece construction and all of the parts remain permanently connected.

While I have herein shown and described several referred. embodiments of my improved circuit closin plu it will nevertheless be apparent tl iat t e device is susceptible of embodiment in many other alternative constructions, and I accordingly reserve the privilege of adopting .all such legitimate changes as maybe clearly embodied 'within the spirit and scope of the invention as claimed, i

I claim:

1. A circuit closing plu having conductor-receiving apertures an side and end reccsses, a contact sleeve surrounding one end of said plug and provided with an otfset finger extending into the side recess, and a folded spring band within the end recess having an arm disposd at a right angle to the plane of said band.'

2. A circuit closing plug having conductor receiving apertures and side. and end recesses, side and end contacts within said iecesses having conductors connected there: with, a,screw engaging the wall of said plug and one of said conductors, a contact within the end recess comprising a folded spring band hearing at one end against said plug and extending at its other end beyond the open end of said recess and connected with the last named conductor.

3. A circuit closing plug having conductor receiving apertures and side and end recesses, and provided with longitudinally extending surface recesses, the adjacent surface recesses gradually increasing in depth longitudinally in relatively opposite directions, and a contact sleeve surrounding one end of said plug and provided with resilient corrugated tongues alternately extending to- -ward the relatively opposite edges of said sleeve adapted to engage the corresponding recesses of said plug.

4. A circuit closing plug having conductor receiving apertures and side and end recesses, side andend contacts in said re cesses, said plug being also provided with longitudinally extending surface recesses f gradually increasing in depth longitudinally in relativel opposite directions, the lower end of sai plug being also provided with circumferentially spaced notches, and a sleeve engaging one end of said plug provided' with resilient corrugated tongues alternately extending toward the relatively opposite edges of said sleeve engaging the longitudinally extending recesses of said plug,and provided also with spaced angularly projecting lips to'engage the circumferentially s aced notches of said plug.

- 5; A circuit closing plug having conductor receiving a ertures and recesses, contacts within sai recesses, one of said contacts oomprisin a folded spring band hearingat one en against the plug, and its other end extending out beyond the recess, a conducting wire connected to the band within the recess, and set screw extending through the plug and engaging the condncting wire for holding the band contact within the recess.

6. A circuit closing plug having conducother end extending out beyond the recess.

an arm carried by the band, a conducting wire connected to the arm, and a set screw extending through the plug and engaging the conducting wire for holding the contact connected thereto within the recess.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing o I n as m invention I have s1 ned my name hereunder.

FRANKLIN DOMINICK. 

